gretsch

History

Beginnings

Gretsch was founded in 1883 by a German immigrant named Friedrich Gretsch. His Brooklyn shop was made for the manufacture of banjos, tambourines, and drums. In 1895, at the age of 39, Gretsch died, and the successful company was taken over by his son Fred. By 1916, Fred had moved the company into a larger 10-story building in the Williamsburg district, becoming one of the most prominent American musical instrument makers.

The Best Years

Gretsch's best years started in the mid 1950s, after Fred's son Fred Jr. had taken the reins—and when the company introduced distinctive models of electric guitars, including the 6120 and White Falcon. [1]

The single biggest contribution to Gretsch's success was the addition of Chet Atkins as an endorser. Atkins was one of the pre-eminent guitarists of his day, and it gave Gretsch a fighting chance against Fender's Telecaster and Stratocaster, and the Gibson Les Paul. Gretsch ultimately sold thousands of guitars with Chet's name on the pickguard, most notably the 6120 Chet Atkins model, one of which was purchased in 1957 by a young guitar player named Duane Eddy, whose unique, twangy instrumental style led him to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Other Chet Atkins models were the Country Gentleman[2] (named after an instrumental hit for Chet) and the Tennessean [3], a lower cost version of the Country Gent.

Many rockabilly players following in the footsteps of Eddie Cochran, Gene Vincent's guitarist Cliff Gallup and Elvis Presley chose Gretsch guitars. Although Elvis's guitarist, Scotty Moore, played instruments from Gibson, Elvis himself owned a Gretsch Country Gentleman - now manufactured as "Gretsch Country Classic" - that he played on stage and in the studio. Gretsch quickly became a legitimate competitor to both Gibson and its main rivals, Fender and Rickenbacker. Gretsch's fortunes were greatly aided when, in the mid-1960s, George Harrison played a Gretsch Country Gentleman [4] on the Ed Sullivan Show. In the following 12 months, the number of Country Gentleman guitars sold in a 12-month period jumped from the mid-fifties to over 2,000. George Harrison also played a Gretsch Tennessean. Beginning in 1966, Gretsch had weekly television exposure when the company supplied the guitars and drums for The Monkees. This had an effect analogous to Jimi Hendrix's adoption of the Stratocaster and Eric Clapton's of the Gibson Les Paul; Gretsch was unable to keep up with demand.

Gretsch Electric Twelve-String and The Monkees

According to the audio commentary by Michael Nesmith for the episode "I've Got A Little Song Here" on The Monkees: Season One DVD set, prior to The Monkees, Nesmith liked twelve string electric guitars. At the time, only Rickenbacker mass-produced them. Nesmith, however, preferred the bluesy twangy sound of a Gretsch over the distinctive pop sound of a Rickenbacker. According to Nesmith, there was a luthier in Los Angeles that converted six string electric guitars into twelve string guitars. Nesmith brought him a Gretsch Country Gentleman to convert into a twelve string, and that is the guitar he used in the pilot episode of The Monkees, "Here Come The Monkees". (Note: Upon close examination of the film footage, the guitar Nesmith identifies as a Country Gentleman is actually a Gretsch Nashville.) Once the pilot was sold as a series, and Gretsch made the deal to supply the group with instruments, Nesmith contacted Fred Gretsch, and asked if he could make him a twelve-string electric guitar. Gretsch agreed, and the result is the famous blonde electric twelve string that Nesmith used during the Monkees' entire run, both on the series, in the recording studio, and in concert. Meanwhile, Fred Gretsch liked the finished instument so much, he put the electric twelve string into production. One of the first was given to George Harrison and was later known as the "George Harrison Model".

From 1966 through 1968, Gretsch also produced the Gretsch 6123, which was a Monkees signature electric six string guitar.[5]

Drums

Gretsch drums were/are also in high demand with drummers playing both jazz and rock. During the 1950's and 1960's, many renowned Jazz drummers, such as Elvin Jones and Max Roach, were playing the now classic "round badge" kits.

The Gretsch Broadkaster line has the distinction of being the reason Leo Fender had to change the name of his pioneering solidbody electric guitar. He originally called it the "Broadcaster", but it became the "Telecaster"—and Fender's short run of intermediate, unlabeled guitars ("Nocasters") are extremely rare and expensive on the vintage market.

Sale, Gretsch Family regains interest

Unfortunately, Fred never found an adequate successor, and in 1967 Gretsch was sold to Baldwin Pianos, becoming a subsidiary. Gretsch's name lost prestige as its models were seen as cheapening and their signature styles fell out of fashion. Factory fires in the early 1970s caused serious problems, and production was finally halted by Baldwin in 1981. In 1989, the Gretsch family once again acquired their namesake company, and production began anew. Models throughout the 1990s were high-quality but expensive, and mostly consisted of classic reissues.

Resurgence

In the 1980s, rockabilly revival player Brian Setzer rekindled interest in the brand with his band the Stray Cats—he now has his own signature model. Chris Isaak's emergence into mainstream rock & roll radio only added to the fuel. His band, Silvertone, boasted a signature Gretsch sound which attracted the likes of renowned film director David Lynch, who subsequently used Isaak's music in the films Blue Velvet (1986) and Wild at Heart (1990) as a soundtrack to Lynch's surreal '50s atmosphere. In 1997, the Australian punk/rockabilly band The Living End rose to popularity, with guitarist Chris Cheney using a number of Gretschs, including a White Falcon and a Duo Jet. This was not the first use of Gretsch guitars in punk ; Billy Zoom of X played a Silver Jet, while in rock, Malcolm Young of AC/DC played a doublecut Duo Jet, and White Falcon (as seen in the video "Back in Black") during the band's career. In the 1990's, Chris Cornell of Soundgarden used a Duo Jet, and could be seen in the video for "Black Hole Sun". In the music video for "Malibu" by Hole, lead singer Courtney Love can be seen playing a Gretsch. Rancid frontman Tim Armstrong consistently uses a Country Gentleman, which has been customized with various coats of pink and black spray paint, at live performances. The 2000 songs Otherside "Californication" by Red Hot Chili Peppers was played on a vintage 1950's White Falcon, and can be seen in the video. One of the most recent Gretsch players is Ross Phillips of HARD-Fi. U2 lead singer Bono's signature guitar is an "Irish Falcon", green in colour with the phrase 'The Goal Is Soul' printed on the pickguard in black text. Billy Duffy of The Cult has prominently used the White Falcoln over decades.

Fender Buys interest in Gretsch

Finally, in 2003, Gretsch and Fender reached an agreement giving Fender most control over production and distribution of guitars—and a foothold in the hollowbody guitar market traditionally dominated by Gibson. The Gretsch family continues its involvement in the drum business, which is now part of the Kaman group of musical instrument companies. New models and improvements of old ones are being released quickly, and Gretsch appears on its way to a new golden age. Gretsch drums are reputed to sound as good as ever.

Notable artists

Guitarists

• Nigel Hendroff - Hillsong
• Duane Eddy
• Izzy Stradlin - Guns N' Roses
• Dave Grohl - Scream, Nirvana, Foo Fighters
• Chris Shiflett - No Use For A Name, Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, Foo Fighters, Jackson United
• Pat Smear - The Germs, Nirvana, Foo Fighters
• Brian Setzer - The Brian Setzer Orchestra
• Bryan Adams
• Keith Scott
• Reverend Horton Heat
• David Gilmour
• Malcolm Young
• Chris Isaak
• Martin L. Gore- Depeche Mode
• John Squire - The Stone Roses
• Roy Orbison
• Chris Cheney - The Living End
• Chris Cornell - Soundgarden, solo artist, Audioslave
• George Harrison
• John Frusciante - Red Hot Chili Peppers
• Billy Gibbons - ZZ Top
• Peter Furler - Newsboys
• Stephen Stills - Buffalo Springfield, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young
• Neil Young - Buffalo Springfield, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young
• Bo Diddley
• Johnny Marr - The Smiths
• Conrad Keely - ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead
• Duke Erikson - Garbage
• Lou Reed - Velvet Underground
• Pete Townsend - The Who
• Robert Smith - The Cure
• Ron Asheton - The Stooges
• Tim Armstrong - Rancid
• Bono - U2
• The Edge- U2
• Billy Duffy - The Cult
• William Reid - Jesus and Mary Chain
• Joshua Homme - Queens of the Stone Age
• Jack White - The Raconteurs
• Nic Cester - Jet
• Cameron Muncey - Jet
• Brian Connelly - Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet, Atomic 7
• Kele Okereke - [[Bloc Party]

Drummers

• Vinnie Colaiuta - Zappa, Joni Mitchell, Sting, many more
• Elvin Jones - John Coltrane
• Christian Vander (musician) - Magma
• Max Roach
• Louie Bellson
• Phil Collins - Genesis, solo artist
• Charlie Watts - The Rolling Stones
• Rob Bourdon - Linkin Park
• Elliot Kiske - Anonymous, Clockwork Orange
• Cindy Blackman - Lenny Kravitz, Jackie McLean, Joe Henderson, Don Pullen and many more
• Debbi Peterson - The Bangles
• Sebastien Grainger - Death From Above 1979
• Nick Hodgson - Kaiser Chiefs
• Chris Cester - Jet

References

• http://www.gretschpages.com/history.php

Elvin Jones, John Coltrane Quartet Mike "Mxyzptlk" McNenney- Pax Romana

External links

• Gretsch
• The Gretsch Pages
• Gretsch in the Drumming Database
• Gretsch Guitars (Fender)
• Gretsch Drums (Kaman)
• Gretsch at Harmony Central
• The History of Gretsch Guitars by Jim Miller